1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to creating images by transmitting signals and sensing the effect of objects in the field of view on the signals.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Ultrasonic, or ultrasound, imaging devices depend on signal wavefronts that propagate into the body. A wavefront can be described by connecting points of equal phase at a given point in time to form a surface that is perpendicular to the direction that ray paths propagate. The wavefront emanates from a transducer aperture and is shaped by a combination of the transducer surface shape and phasing of signals from separate elements of the transducer surface. For focused operation, the wavefront converges to a point, except that diffraction prevents perfect convergence. Successive wavefronts act like new sources of the signal that are ever smaller and closer to the focus point. The reverse process similarly applies to reception where signals from a point source cause a wavefront of spherical shape which is ideally received by a spherical surface receiver. The body of knowledge of wave propagation physics is relied on to refine and extend this concept.
Effective system focusing requires that signal amplitude along the wavefront be well behaved. Problems arise when attenuation is uneven for different paths such that amplitude variations occur along a wavefront. When a coupling fluid is used to allow waves to travel between a transducer and a body it often happens that uneven attenuation situations are set up. As the wavefront propagates through a medium, where the medium is a combination of coupling fluid and body tissue, different paths can undergo different attenuation processes. Undesirable deviations in amplitude can result. This can change the apparent sidelobe levels. Apparent sidelobes are the actual beam response functions that are caused by the propagation effects in combination with ideal aperture effects. Apparent sidelobes will be simply called sidelobes here. This problem is especially significant for high resolution imaging which depends on large apertures and high frequency signals.
Attenuation means the reduction in signal amplitude other than the reduction that comes from geometric spreading of waves. It is also considered separately from the opposite effect of signal level increase that coming from geometric focusing of waves.
Conventional ultrasound practice tends to involve direct contact of a transducer with the skin. Here the body tissue attenuates signals with uniformity over the ray paths to the degree that body tissue is uniform.
It is known in radio frequency antenna design to control power intensity over the antenna aperture with absorbing materials to achieve the desired radiation pattern. It is also known to taper or weight an aperture, where an aperture is a radiating surface of an array of transducers, to reduce sidelobe response.
In the frequency domain an additional complication is known. This is the fact that there is an extreme variation of attenuation with frequency, according to the rule of about 0.5 dB per centimeter per megahertz. It is known that this effect also causes degradation of focus. An experiment carried out by Moshfeghi and Waag showed that for excised liver samples, focusing beam width was greater for wide band signals than it was for narrow band signals (Moshfeghi et al., In vivo and in vitro ultrasound beam distortion measurements of a large aperture and a conventional aperture focused transducer).
It is known in ultrasound clinical practice to couple ultrasound signals from transducers to the body by use of a water stand-off. Hitachi Part Number EZU-WL1 is a water bag attachment where the water volume can be adjusted by a syringe. There is a danger with such water filled accessories because the signals at a focus point are not attenuated for shallow operation as they are naturally for deep operation. Although the power levels can be adjusted, it is an action that could be easily forgotten.
Another accessory for oblique stand-off is Hitachi part number EUP-L53ST which is also water filled.
The disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 5,902,748 (May 1999) Madsen et al. describes a water bag to couple ultrasonic signals from a transducer to a phantom where the phantom mimicks tissue. This method couples the maximum power to the focal point but may not satisfactorily control sidelobe response for a variety of phantom shapes.
It is also known to use a tank or bath wherein a fluid couples signals between a transducer and a subject of examination. A coupling fluid means that the fluid serves as an ultrasonic transmitting medium. Water is commonly used as the fluid but a variety of other fluids are used to enable signal coupling. Castor oil is known to match fat for speed of propagation, thus preventing refraction at a boundary. Johnson and Johnson baby oil is also known as a good match for breast tissue. Like water stand-offs in clinical practice, this method couples the maximum amount of power intensity to the focal point but it may not necessarily produce the desired control of sidelobe response.
It is known to produce tissue mimicking materials for use in forming ultrasound phantoms. U.S. Pat. No. 5,902,748 (May 1999) Madsen et al. discloses useful recipes for making materials that attenuate and propagate as necessary to represent human body parts. This material is specified to be adjustable to match in detail over a wide bandwidth of frequencies.
It is known in manufacturing of composite materials to vacuum bag an assembly to remove air bubbles and cause flexible surfaces to mutually conform to each other.
Subjects of examination by ultrasound are commonly human or animal. Other uses are known in other fields.
Referenced documents, in entirety, are incorporated herein. They contribute to the description of the present invention, but in case of conflict, the present document takes precedence.